Trap-nest.



I". C. MILLER.

TRAP NEST.

APPLICATION FILED MAR. 20. |915.

Patented Feb. 8, 1916.

FREDERIC CHARLES MILLER, OF THE UNITED STATES ARMY.

TRAP-NEST.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Feb. 8, 1916.

Application filed March 2&0, 1915. Serial No. 15,722.

T 0 all whom t may concern:

Be it known that I, FREDERIC C. MILLER, a citizen of the United States of America and an oliicer in the Army of the United States of America, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Trap- Nests, of which the following is a full and clear specification, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, in which Figure l is a vertical Section on the line 1-1 of Fig. 2; Fig. Q is a vertical longitudinal sectional view of the front portion of a nest; Fig. 3 is a front view thereof; and Fig. 4 a detail perspective view of the door.

The object of this invention is to provide a simple door arrangement for hens nests which will cause the door to close behind the hen and thus trap her in the nest until she is released manually, the construction being extremely simple and inexpensive and such that the closing of the door will not frighten the hen in the least, as more fully hereinafter set forth.

The nest is constructed in any usual or improved manner, except the front wall thereof, which is constructed of two wall members e spaced apart sufficiently to leave a narrow space between them. This front wall provided with a combined entrance and exit doorway L. Tithin the space between the wall members is pivoted at d a door fr, the pivot being arranged at a point above the door and being suflieiently loose to permit the door to fall by gravity to a closed position. To open the door, it simply swung upwardly by hand far enough to rest upon the projection c aflixed to thc front member of thc front wall and extending into the space between the wall members. There is sufficient locseness at the pivotal point to permit the door to have a suflicicnt lateral movement to slip onto and off the projection freely. To latch the door open. it is simply raised by hand far enough to clear the projection and then pulled forwardly slightly, whereupon it will rest upon the projection. The size of the door and the location of the supporting projection is such that when the door is thus set, a small portion of the lower edge of the door will project into the doorway, where it will impinge against the tail or other feathers of the hen as she passes into the nest. This impingement of the hen against the lower part of the door will move the door bodily inwardly sufficiently to release it from the projection and the door will then fall by gravity to closed position. This falling of the door will be gradual, as the door when released will rest upon the tail feathers of the bird and will quietly and noiselessly fall as the bird passes into the nest. The door will be made of some light material, such as wood, so that the falling of the door will hardly be felt by the hen, thereby avoiding disturbing or frightening the fowl.

It is, of course, important that the construction shall be such that when the door is raised by hand to set it, it will not catch on the under side of the projection. To avoid this, the impinging parts may be beveled. In my drawing, I have vshown the upper edge of the door where it impinges against the block beveled off at It will be observed that my nest is characterized by extreme simplicity and further that all mechanism inside of the nest is avoided, and also that it will be impossible for the hen to free herself when once trapped in the nest, so that accurate account of the eggs laid by each hen may be kept.

It will be seen that by reason of the manner of mounting the door and by making it of material of light weight, it will require but a slight push inwardly to release it from the supporting projection, so that but a slight impingeinent of any of the feathers of the fowl will be suflicient to shift the door far enough to release it, while at the same time the housing of the door in the manner described and shown prevents it being accidentally operated. It will be seen also that when the door is closed, its edge is engaged all around by the housing at the margin of the doorway, thereby rendering it impossible for the hen to pry the door open when once trapped.

It will be understood, of course, that the doorway must not be too large, for, if it be too large, it will be possible for the hen to enter the nest without operating the door; the doorway, therefore, should be no larger than is necessary to freely admit fowls of the larger sizes. In practice I have found that a doorway six inches in diameter is well suited for the breed known as Rhode Island reds.

It will be understood that the specific construction illustrated and described ma'y be varied without departing from the spirit of the invention; for instance, the front member of the front wall may be slightly inclined upwardly and forwardly so as to insure the door remaining in position on the supporting lug e when set. This may be accomplished in other obvious ways.

Haring thus described my invention, what I claim is:

1. The combination with a nest box whose front wall is constructed of two wall meinbers spaced apart and provided with a dooropening, of a door gravitatingly pivoted in the space between the wall members at a point above the door-opening' and being bodily' morable backward and forward between said wall members, and a supporting projection extending inwardly from the front member of the Wall and so located that when the door rests thereon a part of the door will extend into the door-opening, both of said Wall members being arranged to i11- ciose the edge of the door when the door is in closed position, for the purpose set forth.

Q. The combination with a nest box Whose front wall is provided with a combined entrance and exit opening, of a door gravitatingly pivoted at a point above said opening` on the front Wall, and a projection mounted on the front wall extending inwardly into the path of the swinging door at one side of the opening, so that when the door is raised it will inipinge against the under side of said projection, one of the inipinging faces being beveled so that in raising the door it will pass by the projection and rest upon the upper edge of the projection, the parts being so proportioned that when the door thus rests upon the projection a part of the door near the pivoted end will project into the opening at the upper side thereof.

In testimony whereof I hereunto alix my i signature in the presence of two witnesses.

FREDERIC CHARLES MILLER.

wWitnesses:

FRANK C. AGNEW, DAVID H. AGNEW.

Copies of thin patent may be obtained for ve cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents,

Washington, D. C." 

